(a) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a front end structure for a vehicle.
(b) Description of the Related Art
An example of known vehicle front end structures is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. H11-171041 (hereinafter, referred to as Document 1). With this vehicle front end structure, a resin shroud panel is previously formed with mounting parts for vehicle components such as a radiator, a condenser and a cooling fan, these vehicle components are subassembled on the shroud panel to form a module and the module is then assembled on a vehicle body, e.g., front side frames. Since subassembled components are assembled as a module on the vehicle body in this manner, this improves workability on a vehicle assembly line and reduces the number of assembly stations.
In the above vehicle front end structure, recesses are also formed in an upper shroud member located at the top of the shroud panel to open toward the rear of the vehicle and the recesses are covered to form closed spaces, thereby providing the shroud panel integrally with liquid storage tanks such as a radiator subtank and a window washer tank.
Likewise, with resonator-integrated fan shrouds as, for example, disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-317357 (hereinafter, referred to as Document 2), a hollow box is formed integrally on a fan shroud (shroud panel) disposed around a cooling fan for a radiator and is used as an intake air resonator.
Front end structures are also known in which an air intake passage is provided above the head of the shroud panel. An example of the front end structures is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Utility-Model Publication No. H05-12233 (hereinafter, referred to as Document 3). With an air intake passage of this front end structure, a resin sealing board is fitted on the top of a metal shroud upper that forms part of the vehicle body and an air intake passage communicating with an intake air duct is defined between the sealing board and a bonnet/hood located above. At both lateral ends of a portion of the sealing board corresponding to the intake air duct, a rib is formed to prevent water drops in the air led upward by vehicle structural members below the shroud upper from entering the air intake passage. Further, raised parts raised upward and open to front of the vehicle are provided on the top surface of the sealing board to trap water drops in intake air flowing toward the rear of the vehicle and lead out downward of the sealing board.
Another example is a front end structure disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2002-211252 (hereinafter, referred to as Document 4). With an air intake passage of this front end structure, a vent hole is formed in a vertical wall of an upper panel of a resin shroud (referred to as a radiator core support upper panel in Document 4) to pass through the vertical wall in the front to rear direction of the vehicle. Further, an intake air duct faces the vent hole from behind, and a front rib is provided below the vent hole to extend toward the front of the vehicle. The front rib can guide outside air coming through a front grille to the vent hole of the upper panel and prevent water and snow from entering the intake air duct through the front grille when flooded or in snowfall.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2002-127940 (hereinafter, referred to as Document 5) discloses an example of known mounting structures for mounting heat exchangers including a radiator and a condenser on a support frame such as a shroud panel described above. In this mounting structure, vertically extending mounting rods are provided on respective ends of the top and bottom sides of a panel heat exchanger such as a radiator and the mounting rods are fixed to mounting holes through resin mounting members, respectively.
More specifically, the mounting member for fixing each mounting rod on the top side of the panel heat exchanger to the corresponding mounting hole of the support frame has a substantially cylindrical form. The mounting member has an insertion hole formed in the bottom surface to receive the mounting rod, a disk-like part formed on top of its cylindrical body, and circumferential slits formed in the cylindrical body and just below the disk-like part. The mounting hole is formed in a flat bracket extended from the upper member of the support frame toward the rear of the vehicle. The mounting member is fixed into the mounting hole by inserting the mounting member into the mounting hole and clamping a portion of the flat bracket around the edge of the mounting hole between the sidewalls of the slits.